People…what’s in your garden (or at your farmers market) these days? Do you have piles of cucumbers, tomatoes, peppers? Are you still looking for new ideas to use it all up….? Today I have for you the perfect recipe for that, something we serve at Zaytinya, but also something you can make at home—it adds so much color to your table, and something you can make again and again and make it different every time.
Without a doubt, fattoush…a bright, tart, and crunchy salad… is one of our most popular dishes. It goes with everything. The original chopped salad comes from a class of dishes known in the Middle East as “fattat,” made using scraps of old bread. I’ve heard that it started being made by farmers in the fields in Lebanon who would fry bits of leftover bread in olive oil to mix together with whatever vegetables they had on hand. Some recipes may call for lettuce, like romaine, I like it better with lots of fresh parsley and mint. Rip off the leaves from the bunch with your hands and toss over the vegetables. If you have leftover pita bread, this is a great way to revive it with a quick fry in olive oil…but store-bought pita chips work pretty well too!
If you’ve never tried it, make sure to find a bottle of tart pomegranate molasses…it is an incredible ingredient that is rich and tart and goes perfectly with the freshness of the vegetables and herbs. But of course…if you can’t find it, make the vinaigrette with anything tart you have on hand—but keep your eyes out next time you’re in a market that might have it!
And of course… if you’re feeling too hot to cook, you can always come to Zaytinya and enjoy having someone else make it for you…!
Zaytinya’s Fattoush
Serves 4
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